Brain tissue damage, resulting either from injuries or disorders (e.g., neurodegenerative and cerebrovascular diseases), is a leading cause of long-term disability. Due to their pluripotency, embryonic stem cells (ES cells) hold a great promise for treating brain tissue damage (Taguchi et al., 2004, J. Clin. Invest.; 114(3):330-338). However, ethical and logistical considerations have hampered their use (Barinaga, 2000, Science, 287(5457):1421-1422). Use of non-ES pluripotent cells has also been exploited. They include adult bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells or stromal cells (Sanchez-Ramos et al., 2000, Exp. Neurol., 164(2):247-256 and Woodbury et al., 2000, J. Neurosci. Res., 61(4):364-370) and umbilical cord blood cells (Galvin-Parton et al., 2003, Pediatr. Transplant. 2003; 7(2):83-85 and Ha et al., 2001 Neuroreport., 2(16):3523-3527). Nonetheless, requirements for in vitro expansion and HLA-matching have limited clinical applications of these cells. Thus, there is a need for an alternative method of treating brain tissue damage.